The defence has argued that Pistorius should not be imprisoned. A psychologist who treated Oscar Pistorius has described him as 'a broken man' at his sentencing in Pretoria, while a social worker recommended that he should be put under house arrest rather than jailed for killing Reeva Steenkamp.

However state prosecutor Gerrie Nel described this as "shockingly inappropriate". Last Tuesday, the court heard from Reeva's cousin, who told the judge that Pistorius has "ruined" the Steenkamp family.

Last month, Judge Masipa found the athlete guilty of culpable homicideafter he fatally shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through a bathroom door on Valentine's day 2013.

Ms Masipa said that the Paralympian had been "negligent" and acted "hastily" when firing into a bathroom door, fearing that there was an intruder on the other side.

However the court cleared Pistorius of the more serious charge of premeditated murder, saying that the state had failed to give enough proof for such a charge.

Pistorius was also found guilty of one count of discharging a firearm in public, an offence relating to his firing of a gun in a restaurant.

During the first day of the sentencing hearing, a psychologist who treated the athlete described him as 'a broken man', while a social worker - who was called as a witness for the defence - recommended that he should be put under house arrest rather than jailed.

Pistorius could serve up to 15 year in prison for the charge of culpable homicide, but South African lawyers vary widely in predictions about what kind of sentence Pistorius will get.

Some say he is unlikely to go to jail because defense lawyers will successfully argue that the athlete is a first-time offender with a disability that would subject him to particular hardship in prison, while others anticipate that Pistorius will be sentenced to some prison time because of the severity of his crime.